Sports

Wednesday, January 5, 2000

Eagles fall on last second lay-up

By JON FULBRIGHTStaff WriterPECOS, Jan 5, 2000 -- Ten more seconds or 10 inches to the right, and
the Pecos Eagles might have gotten their first victory of the 1999-2000
basketball season.

Instead, the Eagles had to settle for their closest loss of the year,
when Greenwood's Will Womack hit a driving lay-up with four seconds to
play, giving the Rangers a 56-54 victory at the Pecos High School gym.

"It would have been real easy for the kids to lay down and die after
this weekend," coach Tino Acosta said, referring to three losses in tournament
play at Fort Stockton. "But the kids stepped up and played their guts out.

"We weren't tentative tonight. We made a run and outscored somebody
in the fourth quarter," Acosta said, as the Eagles fought back from a 10-point
deficit in the third period to tie the score at 54-all on Hector Rodriguez'
lane jumper with 12 seconds to play.

The Rangers didn't bother with a time out after Rodriguez' basket, inbounding
the ball quickly and getting it to Womack on the left side of the basket.
He was able to get around two Eagle defenders and go in for the lay-up.
Pecos then inbounded the ball with just two seconds to play, and Alex Garcia's
65-foot toss at the basket came down less than a foot to the right of the
goal as the final buzzer sounded.

Garcia was one of three Eagles to finish in double figures Tuesday,
with 11 points. Adrian Rayos, who missed Saturday's games in Fort Stockton,
led Pecos with 14, while Saul Garcia added 13, including a pair of 3-point
jumpers early in the game, when Greenwood used its height advantage inside
to jump out to a 6-0 lead.

Both teams ended up with five 3-pointers in the game, but for the Eagles,
hitting from the outside early allowed them to open up the Rangers' defense,
something they couldn't do last month, in an 80-51 loss at Greenwood.

"Tonight's effort was the result of yesterday's practice," said Acosta,
who also changed up his starters for the game, brining Rodriguez off the
bench.

"I did that just to shake things up, because he had some difficulty
against these kids the last time out," Acosta said. "I didn't want any
bad memories popping up, but in the clutch, he was the one we went to."

Rodriguez gave the Eagles their first lead of the game in the opening
period with a pair of free throws, and Pecos would take a 17-14 lead at
the end of the quarter on Alex Garcia's 3-pointer and a lay-up by David
Chavez. But the Rangers' 6-foot-4 post Derek Gasch would get inside for
lay-ups in the second period, and Pecos would go cold on their shooting
in the final four minutes of the half, allowing Greenwood to turn a 20-19
lead into a 30-21 advantage.

A buzzer basket from 3-point range by Rodriguez cut the lead to six
as the half ended, but the Rangers would widen that back out to 37-27 and
40-30 in the third period.

A three-point play by Rayos began the Eagles' comeback, and he would
get another as the fourth quarter opened, which brought Pecos to within
42-40. Greenwood then heated up from outside, as Casey Furgeson and Joey
Davis hit from 3-point range to keep the Rangers ahead.

But Greenwood would falter from the foul line twice in the final 1:10,
after the Eagles missed three chances to tie the score at 54-all. They
finally succeeded on try No. 4 when Rodriguez put one in over Gasch, but
left the Rangers with enough time to go downcourt for the winning lay-up.

The loss left Pecos with a 0-15 mark going into Friday's final pre-district
game, at home against Fort Stockton, whom the Eagles lost to on the road
last week. District play opens for Pecos on Jan. 14 at Fabens, and Acosta
said, "It's important for them to remember we're still building for district.
If we give this kind of effort in district we'll be all right.

Greenwood also won Tuesday's junior varsity game, 59-53, while Pecos
took the freshman contest, 44-25. Richard Rodriguez led the JV with 17
points and John Saenz had 16 to lead the freshmen.

Andrews adds to Pecos girls' scoring woes

PECOS, Jan. 5, 2000 -- Pecos Eagles' coach Brian Williams hopes the scoring
touch that has eluded his team for most of the 1999-2000 season will be
found, now that pre-district play is over.

"Like I told them, there's nothing we can do about it," Williams said
about Tuesday's 82-22 loss at Andrews, the Eagles 12th in as
many games this season. "But now we're entering into the second season,
and as of last night everyone's 0-0.

"We've just got to go into district keeping our goals and believing
we can achieve some victories. We played Fabens close (a 47-44 loss in
Monahans last month), and we had a chance to pull away, so I've got a good
feeling about them, and San Elizario is like Fabens, so we're going to
have an opportunity to do well there."

Pecos played without junior post Philly Fobbs, after she missed practice
during the Christmas holidays, and as in last Thursday's loss at Sweetwater,
couldn't get any offense going from the outside. Pecos shot just over 12
percent from the field, and managed only a foul shot by Maricela Arenivas
in the opening period.

Andrews scored 18 in that quarter and passed the 20-point mark in each
of the final three periods. "They are a good shooting team and very quick.
They took advantage of all our turnovers," said Williams. "In the first
quarter they probably scored 14 points off turnovers."

Every Andrews player was able to get into scoring column, led by Jackie
Del Hierro's 17 points and Marcia Martinez' 16. Arenivas was the only Eagle
player in double figures with 11, as Pecos managed just 10 points in the
first half and six points apiece in the final two quarters.

The varsity game was the only one played by the Eagles and Mustangs
on Tuesday.

Offense carries Seminoles to national title, 46-29

By BEN WALKERAP Sports WriterNEW ORLEANS, Jan. 5, 2000 - With the clock showing zeros and his second
championship secure at last, Bobby Bowden pulled off his cap and wiped
his brow.

He had a right to feel relieved. Perfection is never easy.

Florida State, led by Peter Warrick and Chris Weinke, gave its 70-year-old
coach his first undefeated season with a 46-29 victory over scrambling
Michael Vick and Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl.

"I'm as glad for my guys and Florida State that we were able to share
it together," Bowden said Tuesday night. "It's a milestone. I could've
gone the rest of my life and not had it happen."

With sons Terry and Tommy watching - they coached Auburn and Tulane
to unblemished seasons in the '90s - the No. 1 Seminoles became the first
team to go wire-to-wire in The Associated Press poll since the preseason
ratings began in 1950.

Fittingly, their imperfect star provided the biggest plays on a night
when Vick almost single-handedly won the highest-scoring Sugar Bowl ever.

Warrick scored a Sugar Bowl-record 20 points, catching touchdown passes
of 64 and 43 yards from Weinke, running 59 yards on a punt return for a
TD and adding a 2-point conversion grab.

"I had to go out and have the best game of my life," the All-American
Warrick said.

Warrick did little in Florida State's championship losses in the 1998
and 1996 seasons. That changed this time as he wound up with six catches
for 163 yards to win the most outstanding player award and earn a sideline
handshake from NFL star Randy Moss.

While the Seminoles were 12-0 on the field, losses mounted off the field
earlier in the season.

At least five players were suspended or kicked off the team for various
reasons, including Warrick, who missed two games for his role in a shopping-mall
scam.

The game was filled with big scoring plays and momentum swings. The
Seminoles raced to a 28-7 lead, then the Hokies (11-1) came back to lead
29-28 late in the third quarter behind the electrifying Vick.

He spent the entire game on the run, leaving Florida State defenders
and even a game official sprawled on the Superdome turf.

The unstoppable freshman quarterback scrambled for 97 yards and a score,
and also threw for 225 yards and another touchdown. He was sacked seven
times and pressured throughout in the Hokies' first championship game in
the 107-year history of the program.

"We did everything in our power we could, but that wasn't good enough,"
Vick said.

The 27-year-old Weinke, playing perhaps the final game of his college
career - he'll announce Friday whether he'll return for his senior season
- completed 20 of 34 passes for 329 yards. He threw for four TDs, two to
Ron Dugans.

All week, Warrick and his senior pals promised each other they would
do everything possible to avoid losing three title games. They did, helping
Bowden complete a remarkable year.